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This study examined whether, and to what extent, college quality has a longitudinal impact on the occupational status of students after controlling for students ' background characteristics, ability, and years of schooling. The study also explored whether college quality differentially affects the long-term occupational status of students. Data for the study came from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study of 1957 and represented a sample of Wisconsin high school seniors who had graduated during the 1957 school year, had attended college and earned a postsecondary degree, and who were employed at the time of the survey. Survey data were collected from respondents or parents in 1957, 1964, 1975, and 1992, and from selected siblings in 1977 and 1993. The data provide a full record of social background, youthful aspirations, schooling, and labor market experience. Data from earlier years were supplemented by mental ability tests, measures of school performance, and information regarding school and college contexts, employers, and industries. Data analysis indicated that college quality di